Wednesday, July 9, 2014

9/11: Who Hijacked Islam?

By Anwar Ibrahim

Never in Islam’s history have
the actions of so few of its followers caused the religion and its community of
believers to be such an abomination in the eyes of others. Millions of Muslims
who fled to North America and Europe to escape poverty and persecution at home
have become the objects of hatred and are now profiled as potential terrorists.
The nascent democratic movements in Muslim countries will regress for a few
decades as ruling autocrats use their participation in the global war against
terrorism to terrorize their critics and dissenters.

This is what Mohamed Atta and
his fellow terrorists and sponsors have done to Islam and its community
worldwide by their murder of innocents at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The attacks must be condemned, and the condemnation must be without
reservation. The foremost religious authorities are outraged and have issued
statements denouncing the monstrous murders. All efforts to punish the
perpetrators must be supported.

One is therefore perturbed by
the confusion among Muslims who responded to the attack with a misplaced
diatribe against the U.S. In Malaysia, the government-controlled media have
been deployed to stir up anti-American sentiments, while members of the political
Elite use a different language for international diplomacy. Certainly there are
legitimate grievances against the U.S. and good reason for despondency over the
fate of the Palestinians, who now face an even more arrogant Israel. But this
is not the time for sermonizing or moralizing over U.S. foreign policy. Had we
Malaysians been the victims of such a tragedy, we would find such hectoring
tasteless and repulsive.

One wonders how, in the 21st
century, the Muslim world could have produced an Osama bin Laden. In the
centuries when Islam forged civilizations, men of wealth created pious
foundations supporting universities and hospitals, and princes competed with
one another to patronize scientists, philosophers and men of letters. The
greatest of scientists and philosophers of the medieval age, ibn Sina, was a
product of that system. But bin Laden uses his personal fortune to sponsor
terror and murder, not learning or creativity, and to wreak destruction rather
than promote creation.

Bin Laden and his proteges
are the children of desperation; they come from countries where political
struggle through peaceful means is futile. In many Muslim countries, political
dissent is simply illegal. Yet, year by year, the size of the educated class
and the number of young professionals continue to increase. These people need
space to express their political and social concerns. But state control is
total, leaving no room for civil society to grow.

The need for Muslim societies
to address their internal social and political development has become more
urgent than ever. Economic development alone is clearly insufficient: it
creates its own tensions in the social and political spheres, which must be
addressed. A proper orientation must be developed for Muslim engagement with the
world at large. Participation in the global processes must not be the monopoly
of the government.

It is the sense of alienation
and the perception that the world is against them that nurture bitterness among
those who resort to terrorism. Confusion and anger against the global order and
its only superpower have been brought about by the failure of the Muslim world
to address two crucial issues: Afghanistan’s descent into chaos and anarchy as
a result of the Soviet invasion and the subsequent rise of the Taliban, and the
suffering inflicted on the Muslim masses in Iraq by its dictator as well as by
sanctions imposed on that long-suffering nation.

For ethical reasons, Muslims
will support the global initiative against terrorism. But there is a growing
perception that autocrats of all types will seize the opportunity to prop up
their regimes and deal a severe blow to democratic movements. Russian President
Vladimir Putin will use it to defend atrocities in Chechnya, Israel to defend
its intransigence and Malaysia its detentions without trial.

Necessity will prompt the U.S. to seek the collaboration of the governments of
Muslim countries. This is understandable. But they do not hold all the answers
to terrorism. The growth of democracy, political participation and civil
society is the final answer. By softening its endorsement of the struggle for
democracy and the protection of human rights, the U.S. will inadvertently
strengthen dictatorial regimes, thus replicating past associations with Marcos,
Suharto and the Shah of Iran.

For more than 100 years, the
Muslim world has had to grapple with the problem of modernity. Of greatest
urgency is the effort to inculcate an intellectual and political orientation
that promotes democracy and openness. Intellectuals and politicians must have
the courage to condemn fanaticism in all its forms. But they must, in the same
breath, equally condemn the tyrants and oppressive regimes that dash every hope
of peaceful change.